Two fists can’t beat four hands; by that logic, four fists probably can’t beat eight hands either.
Seeing four complete monsters, Du Xuan’s expression changed in shock, and her breathing involuntarily quickened a bit.
Although the monsters in front of her weren’t as massive as the Huai City Living Corpses and didn’t have those strange water weeds on their bodies, their strength was still incredibly formidable.
Not to mention, there was also an Innate Realm Mystic Master hiding somewhere, acting sneaky and ready to strike at any moment.
Even she felt afraid in the face of a life-or-death crisis.
But now wasn’t the time to show weakness—if she displayed any fear, the woman behind her would probably…
“Quadruplets?”
The Little Snake Demon asked curiously.
Her mentality wasn’t affected in the slightest.
Du Xuan’s mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Confirmed—this guy was a fearless fool, both silly and bold…
“How are you four exactly the same?” Yin Luan asked. “I thought even after transforming into monsters, there’d be some differences in appearance.”
The monster that had previously transformed into Li Lin was once again stunned by her question.
“This… I don’t know… Wait, why aren’t you scared at all?”
“Scared of what?” The Little Snake Demon placed her hands on her hips, looking smug. “She said she’d protect me on the way down the mountain! Hurry up and surrender!”
“…”
Everyone except the Snake Demon fell silent, including Du Xuan.
“Does she have something wrong with her head?”
One of them asked.
“I won’t deny that possibility…”
The Demon Subduing Division Lord replied.
“Whatever—whether she’s got a screw loose or is just stalling for time, you two aren’t getting away,” the monster shouted. “Attack! Take them alive!”
The four monsters leaped into the air, coming from different directions. The mere force of the wind they generated made it hard to keep one’s eyes open.
“Evil-Expelling Talismans!”
Du Xuan released her grip on the Little Snake Demon’s hand, pulled out four talismans, tossed them into the air, and they accurately struck their targets.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The talismans packed a punch, but they were far inferior to the Blood Talismans. Though the explosions inflicted some damage on the monsters, they didn’t stop the assault.
“Go!”
Du Xuan shouted delicately, intending to keep fleeing with Little Snake, but… she grabbed at empty air.
The person was gone again…
“Where is she?!”
“Hahaha, scared enough to abandon your teammate and run off alone? Looks like she doesn’t trust you at all!”
The “Li Lin” sneered twice and ordered, “Two of you, go grab that one. We need every last piece of material!”
The two monsters beside it barked once and whooshed into the mist, vanishing from sight.
“Only leaving half—aren’t you afraid I’ll counter-kill you?”
Du Xuan said through gritted teeth.
“Big talk,” the other mocked. “Let’s see how many moves you can block!”
Bang!
Meanwhile.
After slipping into the mist, Yin Luan immediately activated her Snake Pupils.
The four monsters radiating massive “energy” stood out starkly in the fog, and she could see two of them already chasing after her.
That put her at ease.
With two left by Du Xuan’s side, she wouldn’t have to worry about losing track of the Demon Subduing Division Lord’s position.
Soon, the two monsters caught up to her, entering visible range.
“Wait,” the Little Snake Demon held out her palm. “Can you talk? How come only that one guy keeps yapping nonstop?”
“You little brat, with death staring you down, and you’re still blabbering?” Monster A said.
“The boss wants her alive—don’t punch her to death with one hit,” Monster B reminded its companion.
“Got it. Once this job’s done, let’s get back quick! I’m sick of this ugly form!”
The former seemed a bit irritable.
“Oh?” Yin Luan asked curiously. “From the sound of it, you can change back?”
“Shut up!”
The irritable monster kicked off the ground, leaped up, spun twice in midair, twisted its direction with freakish physical prowess, and smashed toward her like a meteor.
The Little Snake Demon raised her arm and swung it forward.
Boom—!!!
Monster A exploded into five pieces.
“Your transformed strength is way below the Huai City Living Corpses,” Yin Luan commented. “That one took several punches from me and stayed intact.”
The other monster froze, as if it hadn’t processed what just happened.
What happened? How did someone get one-shot? What was it doing? Performing an aerial detonation?
“Hey,” Little Snake said discontentedly, seeing no reaction from it. “I’m asking you—why is the strength so much weaker?”
“Uh, supposedly, the stronger they are, the less rationality they have. The Mystic Master came precisely to solve this problem…”
The monster answered subconsciously.
No matter how low its power level, it could still rely on the speed and strength from its transformation to punch a person into meat paste… rather than getting beaten into fragments like this.
“In other words, if you guys become too strong, you can’t complete complex tasks? Trading rationality for power—this setting is pretty interesting…”
Little Snake Demon mused thoughtfully.
“You,” the monster said nervously, “are you human? How could a human possess this kind of power? Wait, wait—your eyes! You’re not human?!”
Only now did it notice the change on Yin Luan’s face.
Eyes brimming with oppressive menace, staring at prey at every moment, deep and lethally… vertical pupils!
“What else do you know? The Mystic Master’s identity? The forces backing him? Some massive, evil scheme?” Little Snake Demon threatened in her babyish voice. “The more you spill, the better your odds of survival!”
“I-I don’t know anything… Damn it, only the Mystic Master can handle someone like you!”
The monster let out a panicked yell and turned to flee into the mist.
“I told you we shouldn’t come to the Great Zhou Kingdom! If we need test subjects, those remote little countries are crawling with them, aren’t they? Places even Great Demons won’t touch—how could we guarantee we wouldn’t run into some unexpected powerhouse?”
Amid its frantic, chaotic muttering, the monster’s body swelled noticeably, its escape speed surging even faster.
“Interesting. It seems your strength and rationality really are inversely proportional.”
She lifted her head, and that figure materialized ahead of it like a ghost.
Impossible.
Its reason screamed that no human could move at such speed, yet there it was.
It was finished.
The monster’s body swelled once more. At this rate, in just a few breaths, it would probably match the power of a Huai City Living Corpse.
Unfortunately, it never got the chance.
Boom!!!
A punch from empty air—explosive demise.
“Dealing with these things that have physical forms is still pretty straightforward,” Little Snake Demon said, rubbing her hands as she glanced toward the positions of the remaining two monsters. “Should I find a way to help Du Xuan? Hmm, how can I make my move seem reasonable?”
Just then.
Boom—boom—
Deafening explosions erupted from the distance, followed by the rumble of a landslide, boulders tumbling, the ground shuddering without end.
Moments later, the white mist blanketing the mountains rapidly thinned.
Vision and smell returned.
Hiss, hiss.
Yin Luan reverted to her original form, tongue flicking at the new scent in the air.
It was a threat.
A new threat had appeared.
